Pouring spout for a bag

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a pouring spout for a bag which comprises a spout ( 10 ) and which is inserted into a bag opening ( 2 ). Said spout ( 10 ) is detachably held in the bag opening ( 2 ) by clamping means ( 20, 30 ) such that it is sealed opposite the bag wall ( 3 ).

The invention relates to a pouring spout for bags having a spoutinserted into a bag opening.

Bag pouring spouts of this type are known in practice. The spouts aregenerally inserted into a bag opening where they are heat sealed orglued to the bag. This entails a relatively complex and expensivemanufacturing process on one hand. On the other hand, the pouring spout,which, in contrast to the flexible bag, is generally manufactured of athicker, more stable material, is not reusable.

It is the object of the present invention to create a cost-effective andenvironmentally friendly alternative to this known prior art.

This object is met in such a way that the pouring spout has clampingmeans that detachably hold the spout inside the bag opening such that itis sealed relative to the bag wall.

The spout that is inserted into and held on the bag in this manner isremovable from the bag and reusable after the bag has been emptied.

The bag opening in the bag can be created simply by cutting off a bagcorner diagonally. In this case the bag itself may be manufacturedparticularly cost-effectively simply from a straight tubular material.However, it is also possible, of course, for the bag to have an integralprojection, which is cut off straight and into which the spout isinserted.

The clamping means is preferably a clip that encompasses the spout onboth sides in a collar-band-like manner and holds the bag wallsurrounding the spout clamped in relative to the spout.

In a preferred embodiment, the clip is formed clasp-like with two legsthat are connected to each other on one end by means of a hinge, e.g., afilm or material hinge, and which both have snap-in means on their otherends, such as snap-in noses or snap-in hooks that cooperate with therespective other leg.

Alternately, the clip may also be formed as a two-part collar band withtwo collar band halves that each have snap-in means on both ends thatcooperate with corresponding snap-in means on the ends of the respectiveother half of the collar band.

The legs or collar band halves of the clip have, on their opposedinsides, a clamping channel so that an opening is formed between thejoined legs or collar band halves, in which the spout is held in aform-fitting manner. To provide for the best possible support for thespout between the legs or collar band halves and to attain a good sealof the bag walls relative to the spout, the insides of the legs orcollar band halves of the clip and the outside walls of the spout eachhave grooves and/or tongues that cooperate with each other. The groovesand/or tongues preferably extend in the longitudinal direction of thelegs or collar band halves so that the bag wall is clamped in betweenthe groove and tongue along the entire length of the bag opening.

The spout and the clip or clip elements may be connected to one anotherby means of flexible webs. The spout preferably also has a closingmeans, e.g., a stopper, which is also connected to the spout by means ofa flexible web. All elements that are connected via the flexible websmay be advantageously cost-effectively manufactured from plastic in oneprocess step. Since all parts are interconnected it is not possible tomisplace individual parts, so that the entire spout is always completewithout having to search for the pieces.

The invention will be explained in greater detail below based on anumber of embodiments with reference to the appended drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a standing bag that has been openedby cutting off a bag corner diagonally,

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the bag from FIG. 1 with a firstembodiment of an inventive pouring spout,

FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of a bag according to FIG. 1 with asecond embodiment of an inventive pouring spout,

FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of a bag according to FIG. 1 with athird embodiment of an inventive pouring spout,

FIG. 5 shows an enlarged perspective illustration of the pouring spoutaccording to FIG. 2,

FIG. 6 shows a detailed side view of the pouring spout according to FIG.2 and FIG. 5 on a bag corner.

FIG. 1 shows a typical bag (1) used to package, e.g., liquid or powderedlaundry detergents, food items, such as soups or sauces, etc. This bag(1) substantially comprises two side walls (3), which are heat sealedall around and which form a base (4) at the bottom, e.g., by means of asuitable folding. Bags (1) of this type can be produced in a simplemanner from tubular foil or paper material. The upper front corner hasbeen cut off diagonally for removal of the contents, resulting in theformation of a bag opening (2) in the corner.

The spout (10) of the inventive pouring spout is inserted into this bagopening (2) (see FIG. 2 through 4 and 6.) By means of a clip (20, 30)that encompasses the spout (10) in a collar-band-like manner, the bagwall (3) surrounding the spout (10) is held clamped in relative to thespout (10) such that the bag (1) is tightly sealed against the outsideof the spout. Located in the spout (10) is a stopper (14) that isconnected to the spout (10) via a thin web (15) and by means of whichthe spout (10) can be closed so that the bag (1) is altogether tightlyclosed.

In the embodiment according to FIG. 2, the clip (20) is formedclasp-like with two legs (21, 22). These legs (21, 22) are connected toeach other at one end by means of a film hinge (23). The two legs (21,22) are formed bow-like in such a way that a clamping channel (42) iscreated on the opposed insides (40, 41). When the legs (21, 22) restagainst each other, these clamping channels (42) form an openingextending perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the legs inwhich the spout (10) is held in a form-fitting manner (see FIG. 5).

The insides (40, 41) of the legs (21, 22) of the clip (20) and theoutside walls (11) of the spout (10) each have grooves (12, 44) andtongues (13, 43), respectively, that cooperate with each other.Especially in the embodiment shown here, one of the legs (22) has acontinuous groove (44) and the other leg (21) has a continuous tongue(43), which interlock in the end sections of the legs (21, 22).

In the region of the clamping channel (42), the groove (44) of one leg(22) and the tongue (43) of the other leg (21) engage into acorresponding groove (12) or around a tongue (13) on the two outsidewalls (11) of the spout (10) extending in the longitudinal direction. Itis also possible, of course, for the spout (10) to have an overallcircumferential groove or circumferential tongue and for the grooves andtongues of one or the other clip, for example, to have different designsin their end sections and in the region of the clamping channel (42).

At the end opposite the film hinge (23), one of the legs (22) has asnap-in hook (24) that extends around the end edge of the other leg (21)and is held in a snap-in nose or the like (not shown) located on theoutside of the end edge. The legs (21, 22) of the clip (20) are cut offdiagonally on the hinged side so that the clip (20) conforms to theupper edge of the bag when the spout (10) is inserted into a bag openingthat has been created by cutting off a bag comer. At the other end thathas the snap-in connection, the legs (21, 22) end perpendicular to thelongitudinal direction.

FIG. 3 shows a further embodiment of a clasp-like clip in which the snapin means (25, 26) are designed a little different. Also, the end on theside of the snap-in means is slanted, i.e., adapted to the shape of thebag. A small pull tab (27) by which the snap-in connection can bereleased, is located on each snap-in hook (24, 26).

FIG. 4 shows an embodiment with a clip (30) in the form of a two-partcollar band (30). The two collar band halves (31, 32) each have on oneend a snap-in hook (33, 34) with an extended pull tab (37, 38) providedon the same. The opposite end of the respective other half of the collarband (31, 32) has a corresponding snap-in nose (35, 36) behind which thesnap-in hook (33, 34) snaps into place. In this embodiment both collarband halves (31, 33) are connected to the spout (10) by means of thin,flexible webs (45).

In the embodiments according to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the legs (21, 22) orcollar band halves (31, 32) are also each formed bow-like in theircenter regions so that a clamping channel (42) for the spout (10) isformed. In this case, too, the insides (40, 41) of the legs (21, 22) orcollar band halves (31, 32) of the clip (20, 30) and the outside walls(11) of the spout (10) each have cooperating grooves (12, 44) andtongues (13, 43), respectively, that interlock in a form-fitting mannerand tightly clamp in the bag walls (3).

The entire pouring spout can be manufactured in a simple andcost-effective manner from plastic, e.g., by injection molding. It canbe used with bags of any shape or type, e.g., different types ofmaterial, such as paper bags or plastic bags. In particular for use withbags that are not made of plastic it offers the advantage that, incontrast to spouts that are firmly heat-sealed or glued to the bag, thebag can be recycled true to its material after removal of the spout(10).

What is claimed is:
 1. A pouring spout for bags (1) comprising a spout(10) inserted into a bag opening (2) and collar-band-like clamping means(20, 30) that detachably hold the spout (10) inside in the bag opening(2) such that it is sealed relative to the bag wall (3), said clampingmeans (20, 30) being designed as a clip (20, 30), clasp-like with twolegs (21, 22) or collar band halves (31, 32) having cooperating snap-inmeans (24, 25, 26, 35, 36) on their ends, and said legs (21, 22) orcollar band halves (31, 32) of the clip (20, 30) having on their opposedinsides (40, 41) a clamping channel (42) so that an opening is formedbetween the joined legs (21, 22) or collar band halves (31, 32), inwhich the spout (10) is held in a formfitting manner, and said insides(40, 41) of the legs (21, 22) or collar band halves (31, 32) of the clip(20, 30) and the outside wall (11) of the spout (10) each having grooves(12, 44) and/or tongues (13, 43) cooperating with each other,characterized in that the groove (44) and the tongue (43) on the legs(21, 22) of the collar band halves (31, 32) are formed continuous, alsoin their end sections, forming a groove-and-tongue connection there aswell.
 2. A pouring spout according to claim 1, characterized in that thelegs (21, 22) are connected to each other by means of a hinge (23).
 3. Apouring spout according to claim 2, characterized in that the clip (20)with the legs (21, 22), hinge (23), and snap-in means (24, 25, 26) ismanufactured as one piece.
 4. A pouring spout according to claim 1,characterized in that the collar band halves (31, 32) each have on bothends said snap-in means (33, 34) that cooperate with correspondingsnap-in means (35, 36) on the ends of the respective other half of thecollar band (31, 32).
 5. A pouring spout according to claim 1,characterized in that at least one of the snap-in means (26, 34, 33) hasa pull tab (27, 37, 38) for releasing the snap-in connection.
 6. Apouring spout according to claim 1, characterized in that the bagopening (2) is formed by a corner of the bag that has been cut offdiagonally.
 7. A pouring spout according to claim 1, characterized inthat the spout (10) and the clip (20, 30) or clip elements (31, 32) areconnected to one another by flexible webs (45).
 8. A pouring spoutaccording to claim 1, characterized in that the spout (10) has a closingmeans (14).